Afghanistan to play one-month long series against Ireland in India

AVA- Afghanistan Cricket Board on Monday announced that they will play a month-long series (3 T20Is, 5 ODIs and one Test) against Ireland in February 2019. The series will begin with the T20Is and the first match will be played at the Rajiv Gandhi International Cricket Stadium in Dehradun on February 21.
This will be the first time both the teams will play a Test match against each other. Afghanistan after obtaining ICC new Full Members Test status in 2017 played their first match against India while Ireland made their debut against Pakistan. The Irish team is scheduled to arrive India on February 18.
Speaking on the upcoming series against Ireland, ACB CEO, Shafiqullah Stanikzai said: “Initially, we planned to conclude the series on 23rd March but keeping in mind the dates of the Indian Premier League in which three of Afghanistan’s main players will be participating, the dates were slightly adjusted and I would like to thank Cricket Ireland for honoring our request. The series will be important for Afghanistan as we are in the preparation stage of the ICC Cricket World Cup 2019 and we are certain that both sides will play competitive cricket.”
Warren Deutrom, Chief Executive of Cricket Ireland, said: “The importance of this series to both nations cannot be understated, so it was important that we could ensure the fans did not miss out on a clash that will see best v best in terms of players available. We hope this slight amendment to playing days does not impact too much on the travel bookings of any fans attending the series. We look forward to a great series – which will include Ireland’s first overseas Test match.”
Afghanistan currently ranked 8th in T20Is and 10th in ODIs. Ireland, on the other hand, is ranked 17th in T20Is and 12th in ODIs. Both sides will aim to improve their rankings and achieve valuable rating points.
Fixtures:
1st T20I – 21st February 2019
2nd T20I – 23rd February 2019
3rd T20I – 24th February 2019
1st ODI – 28th February 2019
2nd ODI – 2nd March 2019
3rd ODI – 5th March 2019
4th ODI – 8th March 2019
5th ODI – 10th March 2019
Test Match – 15th – 19th March 2019